2 Thessalonians 3:6-18

⁶ In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is idle and does not live according to the teaching you received from us. ⁷ For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, ⁸ nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. ⁹ We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow. ¹⁰ For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” ¹¹ We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies. ¹² Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat. ¹³ And as for you, brothers, never tire of doing what is right. ¹⁴ If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of him. Do not associate with him, in order that he may feel ashamed. ¹⁵ Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother. ¹⁶ Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you. ¹⁷ I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand, which is the distinguishing mark in all my letters. This is how I write. ¹⁸ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. ^[1]

This lengthy section brings to a close the letters Paul wrote to the church meeting in Thessalonica. It also brings to a close our 21-day study. It has taken a certain amount of discipline to get up every morning, read, study, pray, and then write an inspired devotional based on the text. Doing so has given me another way of looking at these verses where Paul warns against being idle. It is far too easy to dismiss these verses as being irrelevant to us because we do not see ourselves as idle or lazy. We get up and go to work: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat!” Good there! We mind our business. We are not busybodies. Good there! So these verses do not really apply to us, right?

There are many ways to be idle. Paul writes that we should never tire of doing right. We should take note of sisters and brothers in the body that are disobedient and warn them as a brother or sister. Believe it or not, failure to do these things can be placed squarely in the camp of idleness. It takes effort, intentional effort to constantly do right. Our natural inclination is to sequester ourselves off from everyone else and do our own thing, but we are the body of Christ that needs one another in order to survive. The times in which we live are tough for all of us. We are all assaulted, persecuted, and tempted in every way. Let us resolve to pray for one another, encourage one another, admonish one another, and help one another even more as we see the day of the Lord approaching.

Dear Lord, we confess to being idle, to being lazy. We have not regularly prayed for one another. We have not sought to encourage one another. We have not admonished or even helped one another. We have been primarily concerned for our own personal needs and desires, but today strengthen our resolve to make the necessary changes in order to help one another survive and more than that, to thrive. Amen.